Experts from all EU countries will meet in the next two days for a crucial vote on whether to extend the use of the potentially cancer-causing chemical glyphosate in pesticides for another nine years.
The Maltese government has not stated its position ahead of the vote, saying only that it is following all discussions. The local pesticide regulator is understood to have recommended against reauthorisation, but the final decision rests with the government.
The Environment Ministry and the national regulator, the Malta Competition and Consumer Affairs Authority, did not respond to questions yesterday about whether Malta would vote to extend the authorisation.
The latest draft of the European Commission’s proposal, which will be voted on this week, calls for a nine-year re-approval of glyphosate when its licence expires at the end of June.
The European Parliament last month called for a seven-year re-approval, rather than the 15 years originally planned, while Maltese MEP Miriam Dalli has called for an outright ban.
Environmental NGOs have long called for glyphosate use to be suspended under the EU’s precautionary principle, which states that potentially hazardous protects should not be used unless they can be proven to be safe.
The chemical is considered a probable human carcinogen
The chemical is considered a “probable human carcinogen” by the World Health Organisation cancer agency.
The Commission’s European Food Safety Agency, however, published a heavily contested report in November stating that the chemical was “unlikely” to cause cancer, paving the way for re-approval.
A further study published this week by the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation and the World Health Organisation concluded that the chemical was “unlikely to pose a carcinogenic risk to humans from exposure through the diet”. The study did not consider other forms of exposure.
Tests carried out by Friends of the Earth Malta in 2013 found nine of 10 people tested in Malta had traces of glyphosate in their urine, the highest rate in Europe.
Meanwhile, the Sliema local council announced last week that it had instructed the Environment Landscapes Consortium to stop the use of glyphosate in the locality. The MCCAA has said it will not consider a unilateral national ban unless the EU votes against re-approval.
Local activists have also planned a protest march against re-approval, which will take place on Saturday in Valletta.